Bharti and Qualcomm announce partnership for 4G

NEW DELHI and SAN DIEGO, May 24, 2012 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Bharti Airtel Limited ("Bharti"), a leading global telecommunications company with operations in 20 countries across Asia and Africa, and Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM; "Qualcomm"), the world leader in 3G and next-generation mobile technologies, today announced that they have signed an agreement for Bharti to acquire an interest in Qualcomm Asia Pacific's (Qualcomm AP) Indian BWA entities.

Under the agreement, Bharti has made an initial investment of approximately USD 165 million to acquire 49 percent interest in Qualcomm AP's India entities that hold BWA licenses in Delhi, Mumbai, Haryana and Kerala - partly by way of acquisition of 26 percent equity interest equally held by Global Holding Corporation Private Limited and Tulip Telecom Limited, and the balance by way of subscription of fresh equity in those entities. The agreement contemplates that once commercial operations are launched, subject to certain terms and conditions, Bharti would assume complete ownership and financial responsibility for the BWA entities by the end of 2014.

Bharti already has BWA licenses in four circles - Kolkata, Karnataka, Punjab and Maharashtra - and 3G licenses in thirteen circles in India. With this agreement, Bharti has secured a nation-wide broadband leadership through a combination of 4G and 3G, with its own networks in 18 circles. Bharti has already taken the lead in LTE TDD space by launching 4G services in Kolkata and Karnataka Circles.

Commenting on the partnership Mr. Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairman and Managing Director, Bharti Airtel said, "We are delighted to partner with Qualcomm, who shares our commitment to the Government's agenda of broadband for all. This partnership will combine the strength of Bharti's national telecom footprint and Qualcomm's technological leadership in the LTE TDD space. With a broadband ready network across India, Bharti is well positioned to lead the next phase of Indian's telecom revolution."

"One of our key objectives has been to include a strong partner in the Indian venture with the scale, experience and resources to deploy LTE TDD networks. We are pleased to have Bharti's participation and support in this effort," said Dr Paul E Jacobs, chairman and CEO of Qualcomm.  "GHC and Tulip have been great partners in facilitating this transaction. Qualcomm remains dedicated to the continued progress and success of the BWA venture and to fulfilling our commitment as a key equity stakeholder."

Qualcomm expects to provide technical assistance to Bharti in connection with network architecture and optimization, infrastructure and device testing, as well as continuing to develop and support the underlying technology and the LTE TDD ecosystem.

About Bharti Airtel Limited

Bharti Airtel Limited is a leading integrated telecommunications company with operations in 20 countries across Asia and Africa. Headquartered in New Delhi, India, the company ranks amongst the top 5 mobile service providers globally in terms of subscribers. In India, the company's product offerings include 2G, 3G and 4G services, fixed line, high speed broadband through DSL, IPTV, DTH, enterprise services including national & international long distance services to carriers. In the rest of the geographies, it offers 2G, 3G mobile services. Bharti Airtel had over 253 million customers across its operations at the end of April 2012. To know more please visit, www.airtel.com

About Qualcomm 

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) is the world leader in 3G and next-generation mobile technologies. For more than 25 years, Qualcomm ideas and inventions have driven the evolution of digital communications, linking people everywhere more closely to information, entertainment and each other. For more information, visit Qualcomm's website, OnQ blog, Twitter and Facebook pages.

Except for the historical information contained herein, this news release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, including statements regarding the companies' investments, ownership and debt in the LTE entities, Qualcomm's dedication to the LTE venture, and Qualcomm's expected assistance and support to Bharti and the underlying technology and ecosystem. Actual results may differ materially from those referred to in the forward-looking statements due to a number of important factors, including but not limited to risks associated with the commercial deployment of, and demand for, Qualcomm's technologies; the risk that the terms and conditions that need to be met in order for Bharti to assume complete ownership and responsibility for the BWA entities are not met in a timely or satisfactory manner; the uncertainty of global economic conditions and their potential impact on demand for Qualcomm products; competition; currency fluctuations; and adverse government regulations or rulings.  These and other risks are detailed from time to time in Qualcomm's SEC reports, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 25, 2011, and most recent Form 10-Q, which are available on its website at www.qualcomm.com.  Qualcomm undertakes no obligation to update, or continue to provide information with respect to, any forward-looking statement or risk factor, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

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SOURCE Qualcomm Incorporated; Bharti Airtel Limited